216 Kleopatra is a large M-type asteroid with a mean diameter of 120 kilometers and is noted for its elongate bone or dumbbell shape. It was discovered on 10 April 1880 by Austrian astronomer Johann Palisa at the Austrian Naval Pola Observatory, in what is now Pula, Croatia, and was named after Cleopatra, the famous Egyptian queen. It has two small minor-planet moons which were discovered in 2008 and later named Alexhelios and Cleoselene.
Kleopatra and its two moons imaged by VLT-SPHERE in 2017
Size comparison of asteroid Kleopatra with northern Italy
M-type asteroids are a spectral class of asteroids which appear to contain higher concentrations of metal phases than other asteroid classes, and are widely thought to be the source of iron meteorites.
Image of the M-type asteroid 21 Lutetia taken by the ESA Rosetta Spacecraft during a flyby in 2010
An iron–nickel meteorite with characteristic Widmanstätten pattern.
A mesosiderite showing a mixture of metals and silicates.
An enstatite chondrite displaying a mix of metals and silicates (enstatite).